Braised Collard Greens

My friend, Sandi, gave me this recipe. We had it for supper tonight and it is very good. It came from Cook Right 4 Your Type.

3 T. olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large bunch fresh collard grens, washed well, tips of stems removed
2 T. soy sauce or tamari sauce
Small amount of water, as needed

Heat oil in a very large skillet or saucepan. Add onion anc cook 5 minutes. Meanwhile, slice colalrds by rolling them into 1 large bunch, then butting across the leaves in 1-inch intervals. Wash them and with water on their leaves, add all the collards to the pot at once, cover and reduce heat. After 5 minutes, turn the collards so the wilted greens are on top. Add soy sauce or tamari, if using, and replace cover. Cook another 40 minutes, turning collards occasionally to make sure they cook evenly. Add a tablespoon or two of water at a time, as needed. Unlike other greens, collards are tastier if allowed to cook longer.

Serves 4

Sandi's Modifications and a few of my own:

>>We both used a large bag of collard greens and pulled out the large stems.

>>Put in a bit of minced garlic with the onion. (Garlic in a jar works just fine.)

>>Like a good southern girl, Sandi added the collards in small batches, turning after each addition. I rinsed the collards off in a large colander and dumped them all in at once. It does require a very large skillet.

>>Sandi uses up to 1/4 c. soy sauce (low sodium) for a plastic bag of greens. I goofed and bought regular soy sauce and used 3 T. They were a bit salty but both of us agreed, good regardless.

>>Sandi's note: "And for crying out loud, any GRITS (that's Girls Raised in the South (-;) knows it takes longer than 40 minutes!" Actually, I didn't find that it did but I also cooked them on higher heat until they stuck. In a Calphelon skillet and adding water, that wasn't a problem. It only helped to caramelize the onions a little more.

>>At the end, add about 1/2 t. sugar (raw is great!) and some red pepper in some form or other. (We've got every variety so, I threw in some flakes.) Yum!